E, a memoir
Who are you?
Susan Walter
What is your project?
E, a Memoir. This manuscript is in rewrite revision 2.0. Starting when her son, Henry, is 9 years old, a mysterious, unidentifiable, undiagnosable symptom begins to surface. Epilepsy Is the match igniting an existential crisis as chronic illness necessitates the family rebuild their life plans and follows a mother as she reassesses her identity, her humanity, and builds new muscles in resilience, advocacy, and ways of being in the world.
Can we see some photos?
I pulled a screen shot from Henry’s phone - he takes a screen shot to track auras and seizures. I think this background will make a stunning visual as is, and with an (inside cover) explanation demonstrate the impact of refractory seizures. Considering a huge, white “E” then the words “A Memoir” underneath and some sort of tag line.
This is (obviously) a draft version of a visual representation of what happens to upset the balance of resources when chronic illness becomes all consuming. Might become a pie chart -
Show us your work in progress
Here’s an excerpt:
…When my relationship with the pediatric group finally and irreparably soured 18 months later, I knew what to expect from each and every personality. Like every break-up, I blamed them. And I blamed myself. Looking back, I had told them many stories, expressed many worries, and looked to them for guidance while they seemed to regard me with eventual impatience and a deaf ear.
~
It began. Imperceptible. A shadow. I noticed it when he was 9ish, ill-defined, like a trick of the eye. Did I see something, feel something? A blink and there was nothing to see. Compared to Eleanor who could be serene for hours if engaged in art or imaginative play, he was the high octane kid. Kinetic, always on the go. His body moved when he sat. After bath time, he nestled in for a story, but even then, his cuddles searched for more comfy cuddles.
When trying to describe it to Bill, we decided we had to watch for it and hope it happened when we could both witness and compare. If I thought I noticed the briefest of brief energy shifts, I’d alert Bill to look quickly saying, “There!” which really wasn’t enough time for him to turn his attention. Bill tuned-in and began to wonder if he really saw these imperceptible pauses or shifts. They were like a cloud’s shadow. Maybe present, maybe not. We wondered, did we see something only because we were looking for something? The power of suggestion? Maybe if I had stop-action video, I’d have been able to notice the millisecond when his eyes dimmed, when his body’s muscles caught mid action, momentum carrying him through without discernible hesitation. If there was nothing to see, then there must not have been anything to worry about.
If I asked, “How’re you doing, Henry?” he’d look at me weirdly, yell “Fine!” and run off, …
What will you ship at the end of 6 months?
At the end of 6 months I’ll be through my second revision, 24-25 chapters in total, about 80K word count, and ship the manuscript to beta readers. The query letters will begin, potentially shopping for an agent.